1. Field of the Invention:
The present invention relates to a slide switch assembly, and more particularly to a slide switch assembly which utilizes a bias means to urge a switch actuator into engagement with a switch housing to provide a tactile indication of the attainment of particular switch positions.
2. Description of the Related Art:
Slide switches in various forms are in wide use for a variety of applications.
One form of slide switch includes a plurality of fixed electrical terminals located in a housing assembly and having flat blade contacts aligned in a contact plane. A slide contact is movable in the contact plane to one or more switch positions in which the contact bridges or electrically connects a pair of the fixed terminals.
The slide contact is moved by a slide actuator located in the housing assembly. The slide actuator includes a switch tab which projects out of the housing assembly to enable manual operation of the actuator. The slide actuator also includes a pair of rounded protuberances which are complementally receivable within a pair of recesses in the housing assembly. When the slide contact is moved in one direction to bridge a pair of the fixed contacts, a first switch position is established in which one of the protuberances is aligned with one of the recesses. When the slide contact is moved in the opposite direction, a second switch position is established in which the other protuberance is aligned with the other recess. A tactile indication of the establishment of either of the two switch positions is provided by biasing the slide actuator toward the housing assembly so that a "click" is felt and heard as each protuberance drops into its associated recess.
In very small prior art slide switches of this general type, the bias on the slide actuator is developed by a tiny helical spring housed in a recess in the actuator switch tab. The spring is supported upon a correspondingly small ball which is carried at the center of the slide contact. These small parts undesirably add cost and complexity to the fabrication and assembly of the switch, and the spring itself is characterically prone to fatigue failure after a period of time. In addition to the problems associated with the ball and spring arrangement, such prior art switches also involve tedious staking of the electrical terminals to fix them in position, and crimping of tabs or the like to secure together portions of the housing assembly. Elimination of such staking and crimping operations would desirably reduce the cost of switch fabrication.